Sheet manufacturing apparatus

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9890500-B2
Application number	US-201514944506-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Nov 18, 2015
Priority date	Nov 26, 2014
Publication date	Feb 13, 2018
Grant date	Feb 13, 2018

Abstract

Disclosed is a sheet manufacturing apparatus including a rotatable drum unit in which a plurality of openings are formed; a web forming unit that forms a web by using a material containing fibers passing through the openings; a housing unit that covers at least a portion of the drum unit in which the openings are formed; a material supply port that is provided to supply the material in a direction along a rotational axis of the drum unit to the inside of the drum unit by airflow; and an air intake port that is provided to supply air that does not contain the material in the direction along the rotational axis of the drum unit to the inside of the drum unit. The web forming unit includes a mesh belt on which the material is deposited and a suction unit that sucks the material onto the mesh belt.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A sheet manufacturing apparatus comprising:
a rotatable drum unit in which a plurality of openings are formed;
a web forming unit that forms a web by using a material containing fibers passing through the openings of the drum unit;
a housing unit that covers at least a portion of the drum unit in which the openings are formed;
a material supply port that is provided to supply the material containing fibers in a direction along a rotational axis of the drum unit to the inside of the drum unit by airflow; and
an air intake port that is provided to supply air, that does not contain the material, in the direction along the rotational axis of the drum unit to the inside of the drum unit, wherein the air intake port is provided on a periphery of the material supply port,
wherein the web forming unit includes
a mesh belt on which the material containing fibers is deposited, and
a suction unit that sucks the material containing fibers onto the mesh belt.

2. The sheet manufacturing apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising:
a transport pipe that has an inner surface forming the material supply port,
wherein a through hole greater than the material supply port in size is provided in the housing unit, and
wherein the air intake port is a gap formed between a surface of the housing unit forming the through hole and an outer surface of the transport pipe.

3. The sheet manufacturing apparatus according to claim 1 ,
wherein the air intake port is provided further on the mesh belt side than the material supply port.

4. The sheet manufacturing apparatus according to claim 3 ,
wherein the air intake port is provided in a position nearer to an end portion of the housing unit on a downstream side in a transport direction of the web than the material supply port.

5. A sheet manufacturing apparatus comprising:
a rotatable drum unit in which a plurality of openings are formed;
a web forming unit that forms a web by using a material containing fibers passing through the openings of the drum unit;
a housing unit that covers at least a portion of the drum unit in which the openings are formed;
a material supply port that is provided to supply the material containing fibers to the inside of the drum unit by airflow; and
an air intake port that is provided to supply air that does not contain the material from the outside of the housing unit to the inside of the drum unit with the inside of the housing unit having a negative pressure, wherein the air intake port is provided on a periphery of the material supply port.

6. A sheet manufacturing apparatus comprising:
a rotatable drum unit in which a plurality of openings are formed;
a web forming unit that forms a web by using a material containing fibers passing through the openings of the drum unit;
a housing unit that covers at least a portion of the drum unit in which the openings are formed;
a material supply port that is provided to supply the material containing fibers in a direction along a rotational axis of the drum unit to the inside of the drum unit by airflow;
an air intake port that is provided to supply air, that does not contain the material, in the direction along the rotational axis of the drum unit to the inside of the drum unit,
a transport pipe that has an inner surface forming the material supply port,
wherein a through hole greater than the material supply port in size is provided in the housing unit,
wherein the air intake port is a gap formed between a surface of the housing unit forming the through hole and an outer surface of the transport pipe, and
wherein the web forming unit includes
a mesh belt on which the material containing fibers is deposited, and
a suction unit that sucks the material containing fibers onto the mesh belt.

7. A sheet manufacturing apparatus comprising:
a rotatable drum unit in which a plurality of openings are formed;
a web forming unit that forms a web by using a material containing fibers passing through the openings of the drum unit;
a housing unit that covers at least a portion of the drum unit in which the openings are formed;
a material supply port that is provided to supply the material containing fibers to the inside of the drum unit by airflow;
an air intake port that is provided to supply air that does not contain the material from the outside of the housing unit to the inside of the drum unit with the inside of the housing unit having a negative pressure; and
a transport pipe that has an inner surface forming the material supply port,
wherein a through hole greater than the material supply port in size is provided in the housing unit,
wherein the air intake port is a gap formed between a surface of the housing unit forming the through hole and an outer surface of the transport pipe.

8. The sheet manufacturing apparatus according to claim 7 ,
wherein the air intake port is provided on a periphery of the material supply port.

9. A sheet manufacturing apparatus comprising:
a rotatable drum unit in which a plurality of openings are formed;
a web forming unit that forms a web by using a material containing fibers passing through the openings of the drum unit;
a housing unit that covers at least a portion of the drum unit in which the openings are formed;
a material supply port that is provided to supply the material containing fibers in a direction along a rotational axis of the drum unit to the inside of the drum unit by airflow; and
an air intake port that is provided to supply air, that does not contain the material, in the direction along the rotational axis of the drum unit to the inside of the drum unit, wherein the air intake port is provided further on the mesh belt side than the material supply port,
wherein the web forming unit includes
a mesh belt on which the material containing fibers is deposited, and
a suction unit that sucks the material containing fibers onto the mesh belt.

10. A sheet manufacturing apparatus comprising:
a rotatable drum unit in which a plurality of openings are formed;
a web forming unit that forms a web by using a material containing fibers passing through the openings of the drum unit;
a housing unit that covers at least a portion of the drum unit in which the openings are formed;
a material supply port that is provided to supply the material containing fibers to the inside of the drum unit by airflow; and
an air intake port that is provided to supply air that does not contain the material from the outside of the housing unit to the inside of the drum unit with the inside of the housing unit having a negative pressure, wherein the air intake port is provided further on the mesh belt side than the material supply port.

11. The sheet manufacturing apparatus according to claim 10 ,
wherein the air intake port is provided on a periphery of the material supply port.

Assignees

• Seiko Epson Corp

Inventors

• Higuchi Naotaka

Classifications

• D21F9/046

  with non-immersed cylinder · CPC title

• D04H1/732

  by fluid current, e.g. air-lay · CPC title

• D21F1/52 Primary

  Suction boxes without rolls · CPC title

• D21F13/00

  Making discontinuous sheets of paper, pulpboard or cardboard, or of wet web, for fibreboard production (making discontinuous sheets of board in moulds D21J; drying paper, pulpboard, or cardboard, in discontinuous sheet form F26B) · CPC title